Leeds United have been ordered to pay their former player Jean-Kevin Augustin a staggering £24.5million after being found to have breached his contract.
The club have appealed the decision, which was made by FIFA's Dispute Resolution Chamber, in what is the latest twist in the long-running saga surrounding the French forward, who played just 48 minutes for the Whites.
Leeds signed Augustin on loan from RB Leipzig in January 2020, with an obligation to buy for £18m if they won promotion to the Premier League that season, which they achieved.
But the Elland Road club argued they should not have to pay the transfer fee because Augustin's loan expired on June 30, and they went up on July 17 after the season was delayed by the Covid pandemic.
FIFA ruled in 2021 that Leeds should pay the full amount and the club lost their appeal with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) last November.
They eventually reached a £15.5m settlement with Leipzig.
Following that ruling, Augustin – who now plays for Swiss side Basel - took his own case against Leeds to FIFA, who have found partially in his favour.
The £24.5m fee the Whites have been told to pay is understood to represent the player's full five-year contract on wages of around £80,000 a week.
The club's latest appeal will now result in another CAS hearing, unless it is settled sooner.
A Leeds spokesperson said: 'The club cannot comment on an ongoing legal matter.'
Jamie59
0
This whole saga is a complete farce JKA isn't worthy of £24 let alone £24MILL however the scouts Orta & Radz should bear the wright if this fiasco and whatever the club pays that untalented muppet they should fork out What a joke this has been